Wednesday, January 29, 2014

White Sands National Monument




 



We spent the morning in our lovely Walmart parking lot of Las Cruces, working on business for Jordan’s online company, Surgical Fibers. After lunch we took the quick 60 mile drive to White Sands right through a desert and U.S. Rocket launching testing facility. It was a pretty boring drive but every desert has it’s beauty if you look for it. This particular one had some pretty cool rocky mountains with crazy layers on both sides of the desert. And then there was this beautiful golden glowing grass on the sides of the road that would dance with the wind. Their color is unlike any other and catches your eye in the sunlight.

The white dunes appear out of no where across this desolate place but we were stoked to be there. We pulled up and walked around the visitor center for a few and without wanting to waste anymore daylight we anxiously headed into the park. We picked up our annual “Adventure Pass” for $80.00. It allows you to get into National Parks, Reserves and other government regulated areas for free or for a fraction of the price. I think that Military and Seniors get a free pass or discounted one at the very least! Anyways, we have found on our adventuring that this pass comes in handy and saves us a lot of money throughout the year.

There is a 14 miles loop through this National Monument full of great picnic areas and many areas to stop and play. I have grown up playing in sand dunes, as my father loves to ride dirt bikes, but these were unlike any other I have seen. They are so white….. little baby crystals that catch the sun and sparkle. We climbed up to the top of one of the first dunes we came to and our mouths just fell open…. Everywhere you look there are these white dunes. Just a minute ago we were driving across this very desolate desert and now we are in a whole other world. This happens a lot in a nature I have been noticing. Like the redwoods and the coast, or the geysers and mud pots in Yellowstone. I guess that every little piece of sand here is made up of gypsum and that there is a lake bed only twelve inches under the ground which allows it to stay where it is. I can’t imagine what this place looked like before all the gypsum crystals were crushed into tiny pieces… probably pretty crazy!

We spent the rest of the afternoon playing like little kids in the sand. We made sand angels, ran up and down, tried to sled down them and explored this new world. We waited to leave until after sunset because we couldn’t pass up the opportunity. It was pretty marvelous. We had 360 degrees of pure, raw, untouched beauty with all sorts of shades of pink, purple, and orange.

We had to book it down to Carlsbad for another day of adventuring tomorrow, but next time you come through New Mexico stop by White Sands, you won’t regret it! And bring a sled!!!



Jordan's Sand Angel

Justin has big wings!

My happy little guy with thunder thighs and T-Rex wings

































2 comments:

  1. Hello Cotes Family! We're friends of the Gomes Family and were told you were about to make these treks when you first began. We, Bill & Darla, have been full-time rv-ing since Oct. 2010. I totally expect to bump into you somewhere in this great country! Enjoy your posts and look forward to your many adventures. God bless your travels!

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    1. That's awesome, I think Mary told me about you guys when we were first going on the road! Do you have a blog or documents of your travels? Do you guys work or are you retired? Would be fun to meet up somewhere along the road!

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